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Thoughts on Rice
This podcast is for growers, PCAs, consultants, and other industry professionals in the California rice industry. We'll primarily be focusing on the Sacramento Valley and Delta Region of California. The UCCE Rice Farm Advisors aim to deliver extension information relating to the California rice industry.
Find out more about UCCE and California rice here!
Thoughts on Rice
Threat to Texas rice and beyond - rice delphacids with Lina Bernaola
In this episode, Sarah Marsh Janish talks with Dr. Lina Bernaola, an assistant professor in the Texas A&M AgriLife Research Department of Entomology, to give a rundown on rice delphacid, a pest that is ravaging the Southern Rice Belt and is a vector of Rice Hoja Blanca. While it is not present in CA yet, it's important to be aware of potential threats to the US Rice industry
Rice Delphacid Resources
USA Rice podcast episode about Rice Delphacid
Texas A&M AgriLife tackles rice delphacid devastation
AgriLife Research leads rice delphacid and hoja blanca virus studies
Other Resources
Rice in the Delta
Mention of an agrichemical does not constitute a recommendation, merely the sharing of research findings. Always follow the label. The label is the law. Find out more at ipm.ucanr.edu.
The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed are the speaker's own and do not represent the views, thoughts, and opinions of the University of California. The material and information presented here is for general purposes only. The "University of California" name and all forms and abbreviations are the property of its owner and its use does not imply endorsement of or opposition to any specific organization, product, or service.
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Hello and welcome to Thoughts on Rice, a podcast hosted by the University of California Cooperative Extension Rights Advisor. I'm one of your hosts, Sarah March Yamich, and I'm a Rice Farm Advisor for Calusa and Yolo Counties.
SPEAKER_01:I'm Whitney Brooke Forest. I'm the Cooperative Extension Rights Advisor for Center, Cuba, Plaster, and Sacramento County. My name is Luis Despino. I'm the Rice Farming Systems Advisor for Youth and Lynn Counties. I'm Michelle Leinfelder Miles. I'm a farm advisor in the Delta region. I work on all sorts of field crops, grains and forages, but one of those is rice. And the counties that I cover are San Joaquin, Sacramento, Yolo, Solano, and Contra Costa counties.
SPEAKER_02:Together, the UCCE Rice Farm Advisors need to provide relevant topical research-backed information relating to California rice production. For the first time on Thoughts on Rice, we are excited to welcome our first guest to not work in California Rice, Dr. Lena Bernila, an entomologist with Texas AM AgriLife Research and Extension. Dr. Bernila is a key member of a research team that is seeking to combat the rise of rice delfacid, a newer pest that is wreaking havoc across Texas and Louisiana as a vector of the Hoya Blanca disease. While we on the West Coast have yet to see this pest in our field, knock on wood, it's important to stay vigilant about pests that have impact to the rice industry as a whole. And as Dr. Bernilla will mention, especially about pests that can disperse as easily as this one can. Well, we're really pleased to have you on here. Actually, you are our inaugural out-of-state guest. So we are just absolutely thrilled that we have you here to make the time to talk about the rice tool facet because as I know that probably most of our listeners are aware, that's a pretty huge pest when it comes to the rice industry. But before we get into that, I'd first like to ask you just a little bit about your educational background and how you came to be in your current role.
SPEAKER_00:Sure. I'm originally from Lima, Peru, and Lina from Lima, where potato and rice are important staples. And I always been fascinated how plants and insects interact. So after I finish my undergraduate studies back home, I received my master in agronomy and my master in agronomy and PhD in entomology at Louisiana State University, focusing on rice-insect interactions. So currently I am an assistant professor in the rice entomologists of Texas A ⁇ M Agri-Life Research and Bowman. And my work focuses on understanding the biology, ecology, and management of insect pests of rice in Texas, as well as developing sustainable management strategies that makes it practical for rice farmers.
SPEAKER_02:And as I'm sure our listeners are aware, I mean, the station in Beaumont is a critical hub of rice research, not only for Texas, but across the Mid-South. So it's just on a personal note, that's where our very own Luis Espino did a lot of his graduate work. So it's it's nice how everybody, it's such a small world and everything kind of ties together.
SPEAKER_00:Also, maybe not that is not important to this podcast, but he's also panoing.
SPEAKER_02:Exactly, exactly. And also an entomologist. So um Lena, I think what we want to focus on mostly today is talking about the rice delfacid. And so as I understand it, this, I guess, was recognized in Texas approximately 2015. But can you give us a bit of background about how it was discovered, who first saw it, and maybe what that looked like at that end?
SPEAKER_00:Sure. The rice delfacid is a plank hopper and is an invasive insect pest of rice in the United States. As you mentioned it back in 2015, it was first recorded in Texas. And since then, it has been spread throughout the Texas rice belt. Who first identified this insect was a crop consultant called Cliff Mock, because he was scouting his rice fields and discovered the spest. At that point, he got in touch with a former entomologist at AM, Dr. Moway, and both identified that the insect as the plant hoppers that we have today. Then to give you just a little more history about it, 2016 and 17 was in it wasn't really a major issue in Texas. 2018 it showed up as well, not in high numbers, but to the point that it was not a consistent pest yet. 2019, 2020, 2021 was sporadically coming back in and go. So we thought that our winters were having a huge impact in the way how those populations were not stable at that time. 2022, when I started on this position, I started to see this pest more consistently. 2023, it wasn't in major, it wasn't a big problem in 2023. 2024, on the opposite side, and in 2025, we have seen that these numbers are increasing exponentially to the point that it's now an emergency situation.
SPEAKER_02:So those years that you mentioned, I mean, in 17 it was Hurricane Harvey, and then in 24 it was Hurricane Barrel, if I'm remembering correctly. Is there any indication that the weather events had some kind of impact on the population?
SPEAKER_00:Yes, it is possible because we know that since this is a native species, and those are also tiny insects. Wind patterns or storms or hurricanes that we have play an important role in transferring those insects as well from one area to another. But yeah, so we have the common uh these two common hurricanes in 204, 2024, very, and in 2017, I believe it was Harvey that I'm not aware in 2017 about major outbreaks of this pest because at that point I'm assuming uh farmers were more worried about the flooding situation that was happening after the hurricane. So, but uh 2018 is when uh we saw more numbers in some counting areas. So initially in 2015, this pest was uh just showing in a one specific county in Galveston, and then after 2018, it has been spreading in other uh rice counties as well in Texas, until mid-2045, where we are seeing it pretty much in all the Texas rice world.
SPEAKER_02:I did want to ask if you could give us a description of what this actually looks like, what this insect looks like, if there's any differences between the sexes or any kind of morphological characteristics.
SPEAKER_00:So, in terms of identification, the adult rice alfaces are tiny and measure about a quarter inch in length. And both sexes, the females and males, look slightly different. Males, for example, are brown with black wings in the tip of the wings, and while the females are paler and often larger. So both sexes bear a yellow to white stripe along the back between the wings. And in addition, the females also have shortened wings. So the females with short wings have a bulbous abdomen, and this form emphasizes more a reproduction success for the females, laying more eggs that can cause also rapid population expansion. We have seen that in Texas as well. Then we have the nymphs, these are the youngel facets, as I like to call it, which pass through five different stages of growth before they become adult. So they are smaller, wingless, they have two characteristic brown abdominal stripes along the abdomen. So when we talk about now the life cycle, it lasts between four to six weeks, and it's depending on the temperature, which is key really to the success of the number of days for this plant hopper. First, we have the eggs. These eggs are inserted into the rice leaf sheets or the midway so that people can remember more exactly where in the leaf. And when those eggs hatch within about five to eight days, those eggs are so tiny and are hard to see without magnification. And also you will need to dissect the leaf to be able to see those eggs. But when those eggs hatch, usually the first instant means are you know so small and wingless, and you will need a magnifying, I guess, zoom so that you can see really those in the field. Otherwise, what you will be able to see in the field are the uh second to third instance because those will start to show the characteristics to brown abdominal stripes. But after hatching or through the whole five instant stages, it can take about 15 to 20 days, and they gradually increase in size as well as in the pigmentation, resembling a pale, some kind of a pale coloration, and but also when you get to see the fifth instar, those are kind of like a smaller version of the adults, but without the wings. And the other thing is since we have five different instars in those names, the first and second instars usually stay in the same place because they are not yet capable to move so much or flight. But the third, four, and five instant, they move more to find, you know, to keep feeding on the plant. So that those are the ones usually that we will be able to see in the field. Technically, when we have the nymph and the stage in the rice growing season, those nymph those nymphs usually will stay in the lower part of the canopy of the rice plant, while the late installs and the adults stay in the upper part of the canopy. And that's when we will start to see in the field as well. Now the nymph stage is the most damaging stage in regards to rice production, because the only thing that they do is just feed on the plant. Adults will fly and go to other places to conquer other places, right? So then the females' short wings they stay in the field because they are not capable to fly so much, while the adults' long wings are the ones that migrate to new fields.
SPEAKER_02:Do they have any idea of where this pest is native to or where it could have possibly come from? Yes.
SPEAKER_00:Yes, it is and based on a original study that Dr. Mogwey and a former PhD student that wish we both share, they did a study using a specific molecular marker that was identified to recognize part of the the delfacid genome. And those were 99% identical for the species that were found in South America as well as South America mainly. So Moway and uh Jacqueline Martin uh they uh collected insects from those counting areas in Texas and compared those with the insects and native from South America and demonstrated that there was a 99 compatibility on the uh genome of this uh both insects that makes us believe that hurricanes were part of that way how those migrated here.
SPEAKER_02:And then as far as hosts for this insect, is it just rice that they like to feed on, or are there other crops or plants that they like to infest?
SPEAKER_00:Based on my scouting and monitoring efforts, what I'm noticing is that this plant hopper also uh likes other grasses, but the main focus is rice. However, during the overwintering season, we are thinking that perhaps those might heighten those grasses areas. So we are now going to have a more diligent work in controlling during the other winter season where these areas or the follow areas where the rice is not growing anymore during the season to be able to see if there are some patterns or finding the adults in those areas. Also, I have a colony of the rice alpha in a Texas AM in Bowman. And I'm noticing that, you know, as we grow rice, some wheats also show up there. And we notice that also the delfacet like to feed on those as well. So we are in the future, in the near future, looking into alternate hosts as well to demonstrate uh how efficient or more attractive are those uh these insects to any uh alternate uh crop. You know, I would like to emphasize that this insect and really poses a serious threat uh to the Texas and to the rice production in general because of its uh feeding habits and its role as a vector of a plant disease. Uh okay, something also that uh I forgot to mention is that females can lay eggs in between 100 to 150 eggs. So that's a lot of eggs. Quite a bit. Yes. So then when those eggs hatch, you will have really, you know, high number of means. And those babies will just feed on the plant, stay there. How many generations are there typically? That is that is a good question. So what it depends on the temperature, because temperature, environmental conditions also are play an important role in terms of uh the life cycle of this pest. It can be between a three and sometimes, perhaps depending. For example, in Texas, we have one season of rice, but we have two harvest. You know, we have the main crop and the ratoon crop. Because of that, we kind of give more to the insect opportunity to stay in the field and feed and keep feeding on the plant, especially in the ratoon crop, where it's where it's more of an impact or the damage has been showing in the text of rice world. How many generations we can have? I would say it depends, it will depend. But in my experience, based on our rice alpha city colony, we are seeing that the life cycle can last between 20 to 25 days. Now, if you extrapolate that to the field, when they started to show up, it can be between two or three generations in in areas where you know temperature is really, I guess, um favorable for them.
SPEAKER_02:Wow, yeah. And then as the nymphs move through the instars, as they get larger, does the amount of damage they create, is that proportional to them getting larger as well, or does it stay pretty consistent?
SPEAKER_00:Not to the size, to the numbers that you see in the field. The more nymphs that you see in the field, you will see the damage, which based on the feeding, that type of damage is more mechanical damage, which is called a hopperburn. So when, and that happens usually in areas where high numbers of delfaces are, you know, in that area that they are just feeding on the plant. And I don't know if you have seen the big and patches of dead material that you know is uh due to this type of damage. So what it happens is because this is a sucking insect, uh it extracts all the nutrients from the phloem or the inside the plant. So it basically by the plant by not having nutrients, what it will eventually is just die. So it will start with orange uh colorations in the plant, or especially in the stem or in the leaf, and then become you know a brown coloration, which I will call it more necrotic, or just the plant will die. And it dries basically, and those basically are in the patches or the hopperbone that you can see in the field. So, however, even though if you see hopperbone in the field, it's already a sign that you have a high infestation level. This insect also carries a virus that transmits a disease that is called Oja Blanca disease. It's an hoja blanca disease that it can be detrimental for rice production, especially in the time of the appearance of the disease. So in uh the native countries, usually they see the disease in the vegetative growth, that it can sometimes last to the reproductive stage or that when the plants are already maturing. But the symptoms are clearly when you see the green color of the plants, basically in the vegetative growth or early booting or early maturity. So the white, the hoja blanca disease in in English is the white leaves, which is the characteristic white stripe, you know, coloration that you can see in the leaves, that that is one type of uh you know symptom. It can also produce stunted growth, formation of panicle as well. So it can be really significant for a yale production. So the impact will be worse than with the disease than with a hopperbone. However, in Texas, for the first time we saw the disease in 2024, which increases more the concern about because when you see the disease in the field, there is not a there is any there is nothing that you can do to control that anymore. So that the main focus is to control the insect. So to be so that it doesn't spread to the field. And if that insect carries the virus, perhaps impact won't be uh you know detrimental. Because this year in majority of the Texas rice blood, we have seen symptoms of the disease. Even in our center for the first time, all our um rice bloods were showing the disease in the uh at the end of the main globe, but also now in the ratoon globe. Clearly, you can see the disease there. So I would say for the hopperborn, the is the numbers of landhoppers that determine the impact of the damage. The more hopperbone that you see, the sorry, the more uh number of delfaces that you see in the field, higher chances that you will have a hopperbone damage.
SPEAKER_02:But I think as you've alluded to, the Reichs Hoja Blanca is it's a bigger deal as far as how much yield loss you can see with this. Do we have numbers? Do we have quantifiable data on how much a field can be affected in terms of yield if it's infested with Oja Blanca?
SPEAKER_00:In terms of and based on uh data from South America and Central America over the years, it is estimated that yield losses can be up to 30% if that is hopper-born. But with the disease, it can be up to 100%. Wow.
SPEAKER_02:And so because it's a virus, I mean, most of the time, at least in in the West, our diseases are all fungal diseases. So we rely pretty exclusively on fungicides. But with a virus, as you said, your main method of control is going to be controlling the vector, the insect.
SPEAKER_00:The insect, that's correct. Just to talk about the disease, you know, I'm not a plant pathologist. And because this insect uh carries a virus, then uh, you know, we need to uh the plant pathologist at the center, Dr. Zoo, he's looking more into the disease and the virus to determine what other alternatives we can uh control in some point, uh, this uh how we can control that uh virus. Um so more work is underway to demonstrate that. But he will be able to talk more about this disease if you would like him to you know talk uh about that later.
SPEAKER_02:We might need to do a rice till facet uh arc, yeah, little section, yeah. That would that'd be really interesting. Because I mean, it sounds like in order to really combat the problem that this is, it's going to really need to be an integrative approach. I mean, and so as far as that, you kind of mentioned this when I heard a previous podcast episode, but there's a task force assembled consisting of several scientists in the area trying to remedy this problem. Can you talk a bit about that?
SPEAKER_00:Yes. So, because you know, this is now a regional problem, uh, US Rise is basically leading a task force for the Rice and Fassian, where you know, we need to think more of a multidisciplinary approach now. And that's why, you know, um scientists from different states, crop consultants, uh, industry uh partners are involved to investigate more what we can do to you know reduce uh the impact of this pest. So, yeah, and you know, as we were creating this task force, we were finding out that the pest was also present in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi. So it was timely, you know, the action that uh we took to do this.
SPEAKER_02:And so you must be doing a lot of monitoring across these states to try and estimate the numbers of race sulfacid. Uh, can you talk to us a bit about how that monitoring works?
SPEAKER_00:Well, what we are doing is to initially when we this when I got involved uh to work on this insect, it was already when the damage the hopper worn was seeing in those fields. So to be able to track that, we need to go back to the beginning of the season. So and that is some information that we are going to look in the future. Right now, we are just scouting areas. Farmers will call us, we will go to the field, assess if there is really a plant hopper there, and then determine based on just different visits after that, how bad the populations will keep going or are consistent over the season. Now, there are areas where the insect is present, but not in alarming numbers. So in those areas, you know, the farmer is then taking the decision if they want to spray or not. But in the areas where we have seen really high numbers, yeah, the application of insecticides sometimes at that point is not going to be helpful. And uh, in terms of monitoring efforts, we are working now and understand this, the biology, but also the dynamic of this pest. And for to do that, we need to do that from the beginning of the season. That's something that I don't think has been done before, and we need to do that. So, with the task force for next year, what we would like to do is exactly that monitor that rice season from the beginning. That this insect doesn't show up from you know one day to the other. It builds, it builds up. So by the time that you see it in high numbers, it's already high kind of late. So we need to keep monitoring that from the beginning and see really how things change over time. That's the only way how we will be able to control and determine also threshold levels for this pest.
SPEAKER_02:So, Lena, we've talked about what your team does, what the scientists are doing for monitoring. But what about the people who are boots on the ground? The farmers and maybe even the county agents or crop advisors that they work with, how are they doing monitoring efforts?
SPEAKER_00:They are doing that by sweeping. They are doing a sweep net sampling, and but the main focus is because they deal with a you know big acres of rice, sometimes it's difficult. So, but that and these insects are so spotty that you might be sweeping in an area where you don't see them, but it doesn't mean that they are not there. So uh sweeping in random areas throughout a whole field is very important. And as I was mentioned, the rice alpha are usually found in patches initially. So good coverage is very important for monitoring. So I know that this could be time consuming for them, but unfortunately, we need to be vigilant for with this pest. Then also inspecting leaf sheets and panicles during the late vegetative and early grain field stages is very important because that's where we are seeing more and the numbers of the reserve facid increase or be present. Also looking for clusters of small white nymphs, because those are the early install nymphs that you know are just probably hatching from eggs, and you will see them usually in groups. Then uh the adults usually like to stay in both the upper and lower part of the canopy of the race plant. And I usually like to go with a hand lens to distinguish the wing coloration to make sure that you know we are really talking about the plant hopper because there is also leaf hoppers as well. Leaf hoppers are not a major threat, but it could be confusing between leaf hoppers and plant hoppers. So that's why you know hand lens to me is an easy way to identify them as well in the field. And I know that a hopper-borne symptoms, which I described a little bit earlier, are the you know, a drying leaf material, are the late signal already, you know, if you see them in the field, but uh it also helps us to find populations of the fascist in those areas. And most infestations are Apache and localized, but they appear to be increasing in frequency and also in range as they as they build up. So also the time of the scouting effort is important. You can do it perhaps at 1 p.m., 2 p.m. You may not see much in the field, but if you go early morning and I'm talking about seven or you know, seven in the morning, you will see it in in, you know, just staying there in the field. So that is also another, you know, suggestion as well, like uh setting up a specific time to and be consistent with the time that you are monitoring those as well. I think that's what I wanted to add about on that question.
SPEAKER_02:Absolutely. I kind of wanted to ask you, and I'd like to caveat this by saying that any mention of a pesticide is not a recommendation. It's just mentioned for use of research purposes, but I did want to ask if there are any insecticide treatments available that have been effective in controlling rice still fascinating.
SPEAKER_00:Well, the current ones that are officially, you know, um to be used in the rice fields are indigo and CCX and TENSU. Those are neonicotinoids that overlap by the neonicotinoid group, but it's indigo CCX has also a component which is a peritroid. So that it's you know from a different group now. Paritroids have shown already some kind of resistance to other sacking insects, such as the rice steamback. So I'm always hesitant to recommend that. But being those the only alternatives that we have, now we are in a need to screen more, you know, other insecticides that are labeled and not labeled in rice, but more important that are applicable for sacking insects and specifically for plant hoppers. So, and that's what my program is doing. Right now we are screening different insecticides, and we are seeing some potential to because what we need to do now is to find other chemistries that can help us to rotate the current ones that we have so that we avoid insecticide resistance. And the idea is not to have only one option available, but more than one so that we can have the weak that insecticide resistance doesn't become a problem for us. So, uh yes, we are screening other chemistries currently.
SPEAKER_02:From the message or from what I think we've talked about earlier in this episode, uh you mentioned that you have been seeing this pest on some grassy weeds, things like that. And so I would assume maybe cultural controls for this would also be doing some really intensive weed management, trying to mow levees and grass and road edges and trying to reduce habitat. Is that accurate?
SPEAKER_00:Yes, that is for sure something that we will be uh, you know, um advocating as well because as we are monitoring rice fields, we Are noticing also, you know, other hosts. Now, there are areas where you can you have grasses but you don't find them as well. So, but the main point is during the winter season, where they go where they go. Do they migrate to other areas or they stay in in the rise in closed areas? But the question is where. So, yeah, recommendation is perhaps you know not having weedy or with material available and keep your uh fallow fields really maintain it, maintain it of those fields is going to be very important as well.
SPEAKER_02:And so I kind of asked you about your current research efforts, but would you care to mention any other research or outreach efforts that you or your team or your program are doing with the rice delfacet?
SPEAKER_00:Yes, you know, one of the other things that my team specifically is looking at is, for example, we are studying the biology of the rice elfacet under Texas conditions. Because, as we know, insects behave differently depending on the environment. So my team has now established it, as I mentioned before, a rice alpha colony, because you know, I guess our center now has the problem, so we are able to do this uh to rear this colony now to be able to do more uh research, especially in greenhouse under greenhouse settings. So we are actively screening Texas commercial rice varieties and some other varieties, like with in collaboration with the uh task force, we are, for example, uh assessing right now South America varieties that has a potential tolerance to the rice and facet. But we we don't know if that will be the same way for us. So we are also collaborating with the breeders to evaluate whether certain rice varieties show tolerance or resistance to the pest or the virus with lines that they are developing as well. We are also testing uh insecticides and neurochemistries, and especially insect growth regulators that seem to be promising because those insect regulators work differently from a typical insecticide, and they show it they may show more efficacy on the rice sulfacet names, which in my opinion are the more difficult to control. So the two carbon intext insecticides do a decent job to control the adults, but not much of the nymph at the station. And that's what we are targeting now. And from an outreach perspective, uh we are working closely also with accounting agents and rice producers to provide updates through price field days, and we are planning also to develop workshops for next year so that you know we can that they can understand more the impact of this pest. Also, we are developing extension materials such as fact sheets to talk about this pest, to understand the impact of this and as well as the virus. And the goal is to make uh sure that growers know what to look for when you know uh they are in the field and to have the tools to respond effectively when the pet this pest becomes a problem for the and in those areas. And as you know, uh you mentioned it about the task force, this is more a regional problem as well. So uh the US RIS recently facilitated the formation of this riestal fascist task force to coordinate strategies to address this uh emergent uh pests. And this task force is facilitating as well research in terms of insecticide screening, uh resistant efforts, and I mean resistant breeding efforts, um, agronomic practices, as you mentioned, like cultural control, and you know, uh in other appropriate areas. I'm gonna also mention it that my research group is looking into biological control as a potential uh way to control this uh this pest as well in the field. So, yeah, um and you know, uh Texas AM AgriLife also has more information about this pest. Uh we will update this page with new information as comes in.
SPEAKER_02:There's a lot of resources available then, and we'll be sure to link to not only the fact sheet, but also the page that has a lot of information about rice delfacet in our show notes as well. But you all are working extremely hard, not only at trying to mitigate this problem, but to get the information where it needs to be in the hands of the growers and the crop advisors, it seems like.
SPEAKER_00:Yes, and the other important factor is also that the state understands the emergency of the situation. So a lot of uh talking to policymakers has to be in play so as well. And you know, um next week we are having a hearing in one of our counting uh areas in Texas where we will discuss about exactly why this impest is important for rice producers to be able to control it, but to have the uh funding and resources to be able to do more research. And so that's going to be important and impactful as well.
SPEAKER_02:So incredibly so. I mean, it seems as though the Texas rice industry has been hit with a lot these last few years. And to have a pest such as this become so widespread, it's just more and more hardship, I'd say, put on the producers, it seems like.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, and if you think about it, the rice price uh is not really good as well this year. So whatever they are getting from the rice season this year, um, I'm not sure if that is going to justify, you know, all the spending that they are doing as well to try to use insecticides and fertilizers for this year. So um, yeah, I I I understand also the frustration that they may have.
SPEAKER_02:Well, especially as you said, it affects the ratoon crop disproportionately, which and as I understand it, the ratoon crop is usually a pretty low input crop. You it's your second crop, you mow it down and then maybe apply a fertilizer, maybe an insecticide.
SPEAKER_00:Yep, yeah, yeah. But that is the ratoon crop is where growers uh count to be able to get the revenue uh for them. So that and usually they target between 30 to 40 percent of you know ratoon uh crop. But if you have impact on insects, then you would that that proportion will be less and less.
SPEAKER_02:Um and then your your profit margin it just gets slimmer and slimmer every every spray you do.
SPEAKER_00:It's yeah, uh and you know it's to me it one of the major things is uh creating um awareness about the emergency of the situation and to react uh as well and properly. So in some point, uh you know, even though it was a problem only in Texas so far, you know, that it was a point like where I have to, you know, reach out to other people because and say, hey, we are having an embowling. We are very close to Louisiana. I'm sure that you should be, you know, that you should be looking into that as well. And it didn't pass more than weeks, two weeks later when uh a friend of mine told me, an entomologist as well, told me that uh he's seen in his area. So and that's when everything started as well. So this this year, the impact has been tremendous.
SPEAKER_02:Well, Lena, thank you so much for giving us this information. Is there any events or any resources you'd like to point people to?
SPEAKER_00:Yes, as I was mentioning, the Texas Agri-Life uh uh website, uh Texas ANN AgriLife website uh has more information about this pest as well, and not just about that pest, but also about the disease and more extension efforts. And those in that website will keep updating as we, you know, find more information as well. So because right now we are prioritizing short-term solutions, which under uh the entomology standpoint is uh finding the next chemistries that we can use to control this pest. And you know, under the plant pathology standpoint is to understand more the virus and to the extension efforts is the communication and also part of the monitoring efforts as well. So when we should be looking into uh scouting, this and that will be information that we will stress uh more or have it during uh the winter season where is where we do our extension talks. So yeah. But this is also uh collaboration from not only the researchers but also from accounting agents and stakeholders. They play a big role as well there.
SPEAKER_02:Takes everybody working together, it's very collaborative.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I when this type of situation happens, yeah, you you you need to well with that, Lena, I think I'm gonna ask you our final question.
SPEAKER_02:It's the hardest question, and I know you've already answered quite a few hard questions, but let me ask you, what is your favorite rice?
SPEAKER_00:Well, I I would say that my most popular dishes include rice. However, basmati rice has become one of my favorite uh since moving here.
SPEAKER_02:Oh, are you a fan of the the Texas basmati or another type of?
SPEAKER_00:Any basmati, yeah. Yes. What about you?
SPEAKER_02:It changes. I'm really partial to this new aromatic medium grain that the race experiment station's releasing. I think they're calling it AM201, and we had it at our field day recently, and I just cannot stop eating it. Just all by itself tastes so good. It's very floral. Teresa, Teresa DeLeon's done a fantastic job. Another LSU person.
SPEAKER_00:I know we weren't we weren't in kind of classmates because she was in soil science, I was in entomology, but we kind of took courses together.
SPEAKER_02:So with that, Alina, thank you so much for being here today and sharing your expertise. I am sure we'll call you back on. So be prepared. But we are just so grateful to have you add to our information and help us stay vigilant, keep our eyes out there, and one, be aware of what you guys are facing out there, but two, also letting us know about potential threats to the rice industry as a whole. So thank you.
SPEAKER_00:Yes, and I hope you know you the next time that I get here is not because you know California is now dealing with this pest. But I will be happy uh to be back to talk about this or any other pest. Thank you for the invitation. And again, uh it is a pleasure to have this type of discussions. And my hope is that uh more people will be able to reach out to this information. So please, if you have any question about this pest, I will be happy to uh answer as much as I can. And you can reach out to me by email or by my phone number, which is 409-245-8632. Again, 409-245-8632.
SPEAKER_02:Thank you, Lena. And we'll add your email to our show notes just in case more people want to reach out. But yes, thank you so much, and I hope you have a great rest of your day.
SPEAKER_00:Thank you.
SPEAKER_02:Bye. For more information, feel free to check out our resources, which include the UC Rice blog and the UC Agronomy Rice website. In terms of other resources you might want to take advantage of, you can also look at our newsletters, which include Rice Breeze, which covers Clusiola, Rice Notes, which covers Upacetter, Rice Leaf, which covers Button Glen, and FieldNotes, which covers rice in the Delta region of California. Thanks for listening to Thoughts on Rice, a University of California Cooperative Extension podcast from the University of California Agricultural and Natural Resources. You can find out more about this podcast on our website, thoughtsonrice.budsprout.com. We'd love to hear from you, whether it's from using our text link in the show notes, a survey submission in our feedback form, also in the show notes, or in a comment or rating on your podcast streaming service of choice. Harvest is well underway here. Stay safe out there. And remember, like the growers like to say, have a race life. Mention of an agrochemical does not constitute a recommendation, merely the sharing of research findings. Always follow the label. The label is the law. Find out more at ipm.ucanr.edu. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed are the speaker's own, and do not represent the views, thoughts, and opinions of the University of California. The material and information presented here is for general purposes only. The University of California name and all forms and abbreviations are the property of its owner, and its use does not imply endorsement of or opposition to any specific organization, product, or service.
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